This exquisite early 20th-century oil painting by English artist Arthur Croft Mitchell (1872-1956) depicts an interior with two women, one seated, the other holding a mandolin. It was shown at the East Sussex Arts Club in June 1913.

Draped in luxurious deep purple fabric with her right hand displaying a pronounced wedding ring, she gazes towards the demure figure of an elegant mandolin player. A kerosene lamp stands between them. On the mantle beyond, a statuette of a medieval knight and a wooden crucifix, which is partially reflected in an oval mirror.

Mitchell was a storyteller inspired by literature, particularly the chivalrous tales of Arthurian romance, which captivated the Victorian psyche, and his spellbinding works are often enigmatic and steeped in suggestion. 

Produced in 1913, when societal expectations were substantially more prescribed than today, we're unable to interpret this candid moment through the same lens. Yet, the beauty of Mitchell's simmering ambiguity is its provision for our contemporary eyes to interpret the scene as we wish. How do you read it? Are they strangers, friends, sisters, or budding lovers?

Born in Birmingham, Mitchell's early development as an artist owes much to his kindly maternal uncle who encouraged the young aspirant while also caring for his widowed mother. As such, he was able to commit to studying art full-time, soon enrolling at the renowned Slade School of Fine Art. He was tutored by Frederic Brown, Henry Tonks and Philip Wilson Steer, with fellow students including Harold Gilman, William Orpen, and the photographer Charles Beresford.

Following his graduation, he headed for the bright lights and buzzing ateliers of Montparnasse, Paris, studying at the Academie de la Grande Chaumiere. Here, he was immersed into a complex, ever-evolving, artistic ecosystem where Cézanne, Bonnard and Renoir were long established.

In 1907, Mitchell debuted at the Royal Academy with 'The Passing of Arthur', a suitably theatrical scene induced by his predilection for medieval folklore. It's conceivable that, much like the Pre-Raphaelites, he was enraptured by the gushing prose of Alfred Lord Tennyson's 'Idylls of the King'. A year later, he was shown at the Royal Albert Hall. 

From a compositional point of view, his scenes are underpinned by an admiration for the 17th-century Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675). There's an intelligent sense of interplay between the horizontal and vertical planes.

By 1913, with his career now established, he worked with the architect Charles R G Hall to design a grand property at 32 Mallord Street, Chelsea, London - at the heart of a thriving artistic milieu.

As with many artists of his generation, World War I brought with it an altogether graver impetus and Mitchell was soon called upon to assist at the Foreign Office. He was, for a time, working as a temporary ministerial secretary in Copenhagen. The War took its toll on his eyesight and following his return to full-time painting in 1920, he produced predominantly landscapes and still lifes. 

In 1926, he married Evelyn Violet Ware in Brompton, London, who soon became his muse, and the two lived together at Mallord Street, where he remained until his death in 1956.

Arthur Croft Mitchell blended the precision of a Dutch master with a furtive imagination fuelled by an exuberance for storytelling. His works often allude to a secondary narrative for those who care to peek under the surface aesthetic.

Labelled on the reverse and held within a contemporary frame.

Learn more about Arthur Croft Mitchell in our directory.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 23½” x 27½” / 60cm x 70cm
Year of creation: c. 1913
Labels & Inscriptions: Inscribed with title, artist, and artist’s address on the reverse.
Provenance: With the artist / Thence by descent to the previous owner.
Exhibited: East Sussex Arts Club, June 1913, no. 2.
Condition: Cleaned. Revarnished. Craquelure in areas. The paint layer is stable. Frame in excellent condition.
Artist’s auction maximum: £5,800 for ‘Morning’, Oil on canvas, Christie’s, British Pictures (1500-1850) and Victorian Pictures, London, 26 November 2002 (lot 164).
Our reference: BRV2001